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ALONG THE LINE 
FLORIDA EAST COA§' 



OF THE 
RAILWAY 




The Native Scrub — The Basis of Successful 
Livestock Farming in Florida 



Published by the LAN T> AND 
INDUSTRIAL DEPARTMENT 
of the F L O R I DA EAST 
COAST RAILWAY (Flagler System) 
J. E. INGRAHAM, Vice-President 
Saint Augustine, Florida 



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'Publisher' s Note 



' I *HE purpose of this booklet is to aid in the 
-*- development of Florida's unparalleled agri- 
cultural resources. After years of careful obser- 
vation and investigation the publishers have become 
convinced that the livestock industry is the correct 
basis upon which to build substantially one of the 
greatest agricultural states in the Union. In mak- 
ing this statement it is not intended to minimize 
the wonderful advantages and opportunities for 
profit Florida offers to the fruit grower and the 
truck gardener. On the contrary, Florida's growth 
as a livestock state will mean a corresponding 
growth of the trucking and fruit growing interests. 
It means a vast increase in capital for the general 
development of the state, besides the greater fertil- 
ity of the soil that will result. 

The information contained herein is authen- 
tic. It comes from some of the best authorities in 
the country, both in and out of Florida. It has 
been carefully edited and prepared with the idea 
of presenting the important facts in a clear and 
concise manner. The photographs, which were 
all made in Florida, are labelled exactly where 
they were taken and most of them were made ex- 
pressly for this booklet. 

The publishers believe that the array of facts 
and illustrations herein should convince the live- 
stock farmer, wherever he may be found, that the 
livestock business in Florida will yield as great 
or greater profits than he has ever before received. 
The time to engage in the livestock industry in 
Florida is at hand. 



NOV 12 1914 

©CI.A387499 



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Preface 

DIVERSIFIED farming, including the raising of livestock, 
poultry, cattle, hogs and sheep, has proved to be the safest, 
most profitable and most successful method of agriculture 
in the United States. Any "one crop" section, whether it be fruit, 
trucking, wheat or corn, is liable to meet with failure some years, 
but the farmer who combines livestock with any or all other 
branches of farming has something substantial to fall back upon. 

All the "money crops" produced in Florida have been advertised 
far and wide for years. The "proof of the pudding is in the eat- 
ing" is an old and true maxim. Every town and hamlet in the 
United States and portions of Canada know and like our fruits 
and eat our vegetables that are grown from December to April 
and supplied to the Northern markets, but very little has been 
said or done to make known to the balance of the country that 
Florida is also a livestock state where beef is produced more 
easily and at less cost than in any of the beef producing sections 
of the North and West. 

The Florida East Coast Railway Company has been developing 
the country along its lines for a number of years, and where 
there was only a wilderness a few years ago are now found scores 
of prosperous cities, towns and farming communities. Being de- 
sirous of promoting the wealth and prosperity of the settlements 
on our lines, we are publishing this booklet with a view toward 
encouraging the increase in livestock farming. 

To place before the reader in a brief and comprehensive manner, 
the past, present and future of this industry, we have secured 
and publish herein articles and letters from prominent and ex- 
perienced stock farmers in this state today, together with many 
illustrations of Florida livestock and farm crops. These men 
have been engaged in the business for years and their opinions 
are valuable. 

To give the reader the present status of this branch of farming, 
we give on the following pages the number of animals on hand 
in each county traversed by the Florida East Coast Railway, on 




Native Florida Grass 



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July 1st, 1912, as given in the twelfth Biennial Report of the 
Commissioner of Agriculture of the State of Florida: 



County Hoi 



Duval 2,639 

St. Johns 1,483 

Putnam 1,030 

Volusia 2,044 

Brevard 457 

Seminole 

and 2,169 
Orange J ! 

Osceola j (no rpt.) 

St. Lucie 346 

Palm Beach. J 249 

Dade 847 



Native Stock 
Cattle 

15,134 
28,101 
13,993 
28,318 
10,667 

34,945 

(est.) 75,000 

19,277 

3,135 

78 



Graded Cattle 

and Milk 

Cows 



Hogs 



Total 



2,123 
1,462 
1,320 

(no rpt.) 
210 

1,964 

(no rpt.) 

157 

270 

1,392 



17,401 
24,468 
13,563 
17,096 
5,580 

8,189 

(no rpt.) 
3,784 
1,138 
949 



Sheep 

~500 

4,105 

9 

12,430 

(no rpt.) 

1,680 

(no rpt.) 
55 
(none) 
(none) 



11,264 



228,648 



92.168 



18,779 



. 4,781 
. 3,955 
.701,075 



A s 



*Total mules in counties named 

Total goats in counties named 

*Total chickens in counties named. 

*Osceola County not reported. 

Total Acreage of Crops in Florida 

S reported by W. A. McRae, Commissioner of Agriculture of 
the State of Florida. All reports cover the period between 
July 1st, 1911, and July 1st, 1912: 

Field crops, acres 937 264 

Vegetable and garden products, acres ~_ 63^241 

Total acreage in cultivation 1,000,505 

Total Value of Florida Farm Products 

Field Crops. $16,051,730 

Vegetable and garden products 8,056,685 

Fruit products 9,'689i774 

Livestock on hand 23*51o!479 

Poultry and products 3^527,286 

Dairy products 2'518,'241 

Miscellaneous products 133713 

Total ....$63,487,908 




An Ideal Range in Central Florida 

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Field Crop Production in Florida 

Corn 5,453,936 bushels $4,455,161 

Oats 287,708 bushels 232,250 

Rye 1,727 bushels 4,250 

Rice 14,737 bushels 22,609 

Peanuts 1,534,736 bushels 1,630,275 

Hay, native grasses 46,650 tons 516,351 

Millet 918 tons 16,057 

Cassava 923 tons 5,360 

Alfalfa 110 tons 2,965 

Cabbage 193,729 crates 295,279 

Irish potatoes 1,080,215 bushels 1,640,882 

Radishes 98,403 crates 133,183 

Sugar cane 67,846 barrels syrup and 2,933 pounds sugar 920,949 

Velvet beans 320,930 bushels and 2,526 tons hay 645,488 

Field peas 76,885 bushels and 9,849 tons hay 330,350 

The above table does not include the cotton crop, valued at $4,284,803.00; the 
tobacco crop at $586,607.00; and a large variety of well known vegetable and 
fruit crops not used for stock feed which were valued at nearly $20,000,000.00. 

Livestock on Hand July 1st, 1912 

Number Value 

48,41S $6,009,142 

1,942 115,401 

32,352 5,396,601 

670 78,920 

248 15,361 

9,320 292,997 

772,076 7,224,544 



Horses 

Colts 

Mules 

Mule colts 

Asses and Jennets 

Work Oxen, 

Stock cattle, Native breeds _ _ 
Thoroughbred cattle. 1 14188 

}/2 grades and up _ 
Cows for milk only 

Hogs 

Sheep and lambs 



489,089 



39,621 1,215,842 

661,437 1,858,915 

114,501 287,699 

Goats 43,998 43,854 

Poultry 2,793,932 1,370,129 

Miscellaneous 

Eggs sold and used 8,175,251 dozens $2,157,157 

Milk sold and used 8,131,761 gallons 2,166,018 

Butter sold and used 1,133,887 pounds 351,964 

Cheese sold and used 1,872 pounds 259 

Beeswax 25,280pounds '...- 4,768 

Bees 20,577 stands 

Honey 675,718 pounds 72,363 

Wool, spring clip, 261,017 pounds and 83,344 fleeces 56,582 




On the Kange in Seminole County 



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Introduction 

By Hon. J. N. Whitner, Manager of Tosohatehee 
Ranch, Sanford, Florida 

THE beef supply is now one of the 
recognized world problems. The 
advancing price of land and the 
need for farms and orchards is 
rapidly reducing the area of graz- 
ing land, thereby making a short- 
age in beef with resulting high 
prices. The 1913 Year Book of 
the Department of Agriculture says the census 
of 1910 shows "a decrease in ten years of 
9,385,343 head or 18.5 per cent, of all cattle 
other than milch cows." Since the increase in 
population for the same decade in the United 
States was twenty per cent., we find the start- 
ling decrease in the supply of beef of 38 per 
cent, per capita. 

The Year Book says "the question of pro- 
viding enough beef to supply the demand is 
now recognized as one of world-wide impor- 
tance," and further discussing the subject de- 
votes a section of the book, beginning as fol- 
lows : 

"Possibilities of the South — There is one 
section that can produce more cattle and 
produce them more cheaply than any other 
section of the whole country, for the lands 
are still cheap, the grazing is good, the 
pasture season is long, feeds can be pro- 
duced at a minimum cost, and inexpen- 
sive shelter only is required. That sec- 
tion of the country is the South." 

In Florida no shelter is required and the pas- 
ture season is perpetual, from January to 
January. 



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Why Florida Is Adapted to Raising 

Livestock 



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E are indebted to Mr. W. A. McRae, Florida's commissioner 
of agriculture, for the following : 



Tallahassee, Florida, September 12th, 1914. 
Hon. J. E. Ingraham, 
St. Augustine, Florida. 

Dear Sir: 

There are many reasons why Florida is adapted to the successful 
growing of livestock of all kinds, almost without limit. 

Among the principal reasons is its unlimited and unfailing supply 
of water, which is absolutely essential in every country to the suc- 
cessful production of livestock of all kinds. Where water is not 
running from natural sources, there is hardly a locality in the state 
that cannot be made to artificially produce water enough for all rea- 
sonable purposes, whether it be stock raising or other purposes. 
Another which is equally as important is the short feeding and 
sheltering period necessary in this state as compared with other 
states of the Union, it being necessary, and that in parts of the 
state only, to feed no more than three months and to shelter, pos- 
sibly all told, no more than six weeks in the entire year. 

Another and as great an advantage in this state is the adaptability 
of the soils of Florida to the production of all kinds of forage crops 
and at less cost of production than elsewhere. Of course the climate 
has much to do with this as well as the rainfall and the soil, but 
because of these conditions there is no section of the United States 
that can surpass Florida as a livestock producing country. 

Of the entire area of Florida there are only about 3,000,000 acres 
in farms and under farming control. There are not less than 
30,000,000 acres that can be used to a greater or less extent for forage 
production or grazing purposes for livestock. This will show that 
Florida has within her boundaries the greatest grazing region east 
of the Mississippi river, and practically an unlimited capacity to 
produce forage crops to supply the livestock that could be grown 
upon it. 

The number of livestock of all kinds in the state is about 2,000,000 
in round numbers, and the value of these is $25,000,000. Instead 
of this small number there should be not less than 10,000,000 head 
of livestock growing in Florida, in which case the value instead of 
being $25,000,000, should be $250,000,000 to $300,000,000. This 
may sound large, but it is entirely practical and reasonable and 
can be easily attained. 

Page nine = 
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LIVJE STOCK FAR M ING IN FLORIDA 

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Native Steers in Feeding Pens of Hastings Cold Storage Company, St. Johns County 

If the vast area of idle lands in the South, including Florida, were 
put to these purposes, there would be no necessity for the big meat 
packers to go to Argentina to produce or purchase their meat sup- 
plies for the American people or for export. There is land enough 
idle in the South, including Florida, to produce livestock to supply 
not only the people of the United States but all of the export trade 
that America can control, and in all of this Florida should have a large 
and important part. In fact, no other Southern state could excel 
Florida in this respect under intelligent and persistent direction. 
The number of cattle on hand (in Florida) on the first of July, 1912, 
when our last report was made up, was 835,205. At the same time 
the number of hogs in the state of all ages was 661,437. Sheep of 
all ages, 114,501. 

The aggregate acreage in grain crops used for feed was 642,942 and 
the yield in bushels of grain and feed stuffs, which included peanuts 
and sweet potatoes used for stock feed, was 10,644,240 bushels. 
The total acreage in forage crops of all kinds was 165,466. The 
yield in tons of forage, which of course included the hay of all kinds, 
was 177,340 tons. The tonnage does not appear to be so large, but 
when it is considered that an average value of $20.00 per ton is a 
conservative figure as to value, it shows forage crops of more than 
three and a half million dollars in value. 

Yours very truly, 

W. A. McRAE, 
Commissioner of Agriculture. 

Page ten 
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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 



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Bunch of Native Three- Year-Old Steers on Hastings Cold Storage Company's Farm, 

St. Johns County 

Present Conditions 

By Hon. J. N. Whitner, Manager of Tosohatchee Ranch, 
Sanford, Florida 

A MONG the unexploited resources of Florida, improved stock 
J-\ raising, especially beef cattle, is of all others the most promis- 
ing of big profits and pleasant occupation without the risk, 
that in some measure, attends other enterprises. It is true that 
raising beef in Florida has long been profitable, but it has been so 
not by the help of man but rather in spite of him, as a glance at 
existing conditions will show. 

To begin with, the original stock of cattle was imported by the 
Spaniards, and judging from that nation's fondness for bull fights, 
it is fair to surmise that they bred cattle largely to fight and not for 
beef. At any rate these cattle have run at large on our ranges and 
if left entirely to nature, perhaps under the law of the survival of 
the fittest, the stock might not have deteriorated much, but by the 
interference of man in breeding, has done its worst. These degener- 
ates from a questionable parentage have been for generations in- 
fested with the cattle tick, which has not only sucked their life blood 
in large quantities, but has infected them with fever germs, of what 
is known as Texas or tick fever. While they do not die of fever 
because immune from birth, they carry the infection, always having 
the same anaemic condition as a human being with malaria, to which 



Page eleven E 



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LIVE STOCK 



FARMING 



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FLORIDA 



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Native Cows and Bull on S. H. Gaitskill's Farm at Mcintosh, Marion County 

disease in people it is no doubt akin, being splenetic. Under the 
most favorable conditions of seasons and pasture they have suffi- 
cient vigor to put on flesh, thrive and look well, but on poor pas- 
ture and in bad weather they are little able to endure hardship 
and look and no doubt feel like a man with a combined case of 
malaria and hookworms. As though this were not enough, the 
mistaken friend and owner has annually and oftener burnt the grass 
that nature would have supplied. Burning the grass annually is 
bad in itself, but persistence in it destroys the fertility of the soil. 

In spite of these deterrents the cattle business in Florida has been 
and is very profitable, and in the past year forty thousand to fifty 
thousand head have been shipped out of the state, principally to 
the feeding pens of Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas. 

Pasture 

SINCE "all flesh is grass," the question of raising good beef 
profitably in Florida, in its last analysis, will depend upon 
whether we can or do have good, cheap pastures. 
This article does not undertake to discuss the subject as regards 
the state at large, nor all qualities of land, but only the flatwoods 
and prairies, more particularly that section lying between the Kis- 
simmee River on the west, and the St. Johns and Indian Rivers on 
the east, on which great herds of cattle have fed for the past fifty 



= Page twelve 



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Cowpunchers" on Tosohatcbee Ranch, Seminole Connty 



years. These lands are very fertile, notwithstanding man has in- 
terfered to his own injury and by annual fires has burnt up the 
vegetable matter and prevented the accumulation of humus with 
its precious content of nitrogen, the expensive ingredient of all 
fertilizer. Fortunately, fire could not destroy the potash and phos- 
phoric acid, and on the level sandy soil it has not been washed away. 

The present abundant growth of grass, weeds, shrubs and flowers 
prove the fertility of the soil and the long season of nine or ten 
months, in which vegetation grows, is sufficient for nature to restore 
the loss. This long season, with an average rainfall of sixty inches, 
gives ample time in which to grow improved grasses and many 
feed crops. 

At present the tick infested cattle find abundant feed and thrive 
from the middle of March until the middle of December and often 
later. It is really only during January and February that stock 
cattle need any help, on account of the colder weather, the dormant 
state of the grass and its destruction at this time on large areas by 
fire. Winter pastures of comparatively small area, if planted in im- 
proved grasses, would cheaply provide for this short season, and 
return stock to the general range in fine condition. They would 
increase the yield of calves and prevent their becoming "stunted," 
which is one cause of slow growth resulting in small cattle of poor 
quality. In addition to the various kinds of wild grass, growing 
on uncleared woodland or unbroken prairie, all cultivated lands 
produce the second year without seeding, either crab grass (the 

Page thirteen 

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llll l l l- lll l lll l l l Illl I I IIII1H Illllllllllllll I Illllll IIIIII I II I IIIIIIII I IIIIII M i rT TT T 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



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Native Bull on S. H. Gaitskill's Farm at Mcintosh, Marion County 

most common), crow-foot or blanket grass. All of these in season 
make good pastures and the first two make good hay. 

Many other varieties can be grown successfully and full information 
concerning them is furnished by the Department of Agriculture at 
Washington, D. C, or by the Experiment Station at Gainesville, 
Florida, by P. H. Rolfs, director. Before passing this subject it may 
be well to say that Bermuda grass and its twin sister, St. Lucie 
grass, grow luxuriantly during nine or ten months and in mild winters 
all the year, and furnish continuous pasture. Rhodes grass, from 
the limited experiments made, promises a wonderful hay grass for 
the summer months and extra fine pasture during the entire winter, 
at least as far north as the twenty-ninth parallel. During the last 
winter it grew luxuriantly through the entire winter without turn- 
ing brown once. 

Improved Breeding 

WITH tick eradication, which is imminent and bound to come, 
and even in advance of it, improved cattle is the next or 
possibly the first step in the production of prime beef. To 
say that to raise good beef and get best prices from our scrub or 
"Florida knot-head" cattle is out the question, would be only the 
simple truth. The proof is easy: Last year stock men bragged 
about getting $28.00 to $30.00 for four-year-old steers, while Hon. 
C. A. Carson, of Kissimmee, sold a half-breed Polled Angus two- 

= Page fourteen 



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FLORIDA 



EAST 



COAST 



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R A I L, W A Y 

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Half Breed Yearling Holstein Bull. Bred and Owned by A. Snellgrove near 

St. Augustine, St. Johns County 

[The mother of this animal was a native cow and his sire the pure-bred Holstein 

shown in this booklet] 

year-old steer right off the range for .$55.50, while scrub two-year- 
olds averaged him less than $20.00 to the same buyer. Mr. Z. T. 
Chambliss, of Ocala, sold a two-year-old grade Shorthorn weighing 
1,145 pounds at 6 cents, netting $68.70 — more than three times 
what Mr. Carson's two-year-old scrubs brought. Mr. Carson sold 
his half-breed Angus steer, saw the advantage and bought fifty 
pure-bred bulls of the same stock. 

The improved beef breeds, Aberdeen Angus, Hereford and Short- 
horn, all do well and half-breeds show wonderful improvement over 
the scrubs. It seems hardly necessary to emphasize this point 
further than to say it is altogether feasible and will be profitable 
to raise pure-bred cattle to supply the demand that is already here 
for blooded stock for breeding purposes. This is a most inviting 
field, full of interest and certain of big profits. There is no risk in 
it if cattle are immune from tick fever. 

The writer had a small herd of Jerseys on the St. Johns prairie for 
years and his bull did service the entire year without feed or shelter. 
Mr. Sistrunk, of Ocala, has a herd composed of full-blood Angus 
cattle, half-breeds and scrubs to be bred up. This herd inspected 
June first, running at large on his splendid estate on the Ocklawaha 
river, on prairie and hammock land, showed some ticks, but were 
handsome notwithstanding. The remarkable and interesting fact 
is that the pure-bred cattle were in better flesh and sleeker and 



Page fifteen - 



minium 



IT MINIM 



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L I V E 

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FARMING 



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HI Illlllllllllllll I lllllllllllllllfT 

IN FLORIDA 

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Registered Shorthorn Bull, Duke of Niagara, 208555 — weight 1,600 pounds. Owned by 
S. H. Gaitskill, of Mcintosh, Marion County 

apparently thriftier than the half-breeds and the half-breeds in 
much better condition than the scrubs. This condition was so 
obvious as to be frequently brought to notice and commented on 
by the gentlemen of the inspecting party. 

Feed for Finishing Beef 

IN the writer's opinion silos will not be found necessary or by 
comparison profitable in that part of Florida under discussion. 
Not because silage cannot be grown cheaply, for it can, but be- 
cause an abundance of green stuff can be cut from the fields or the 
cattle can gather it for themselves all the year. As far north as Ocala 
the method followed by Mr. Z. T. Chambliss would be hard to 
improve on. For finishing beef he plants corn and velvet beans 
in alternate rows and cultivates until the beans cover the ground, 
running over the corn. In December, when the pastures begin to 
fail, his steers are turned onto the beans and corn with such good 
results that last spring a two-year-old half-breed Shorthorn steer 
weighed 1,145 pounds. 

We shall possibly beat this, but cost of feed and feeding considered, 
I hardly expect to live to see a better plan or better results. All 
the millets as well as Japanese cane make large yields and can be 
fed green or from silos. Kaffir corn makes large crops of fodder 
and grain and stays green all winter. All root crops, including the 

rage sixteen 



1 1 1 1 in ii 1 1 1 1 1 mini 1 1 iniiiiiiiiii illinium 



HIM I 



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iiHiiii ii ii i iiiiii i iiiii iii iii i i i iiiii iinnni 



FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

=-■,111 1 Illllllllllllllllllllllllllll Illllllllllllllllimillllllll IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIIIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 1 1 1 1 1 H 1 1 1 1 1 1 ITTTTTTTE 




Three- Year-Old Thoroughbred Holstein Bull on A. Snellgrove's Dairy Farm near 
St. Augustine, St. Johns County — Brought to Florida When Three Months Old 

"dasheen," make large yields, and where cattle were to be fed, 
especially dairy cattle, the writer planted mangel wurzel, sugar beets 
and carrots in October when the cost of cultivation was slight and 
obtained phenomenal yields, which were fed fresh with good results. 



Summing Up 



THE cattle business in Florida is universally profitable in spite 
of conditions that in a colder climate cattle would not be able 
to withstand. Briefly, we find tick infested, scrub cattle, de- 
generate from inbreeding, running at large on prairies, which are 
being damaged by annual fires, often at the wrong season of the 
year; driven at will by any owner of one cow who drives many to 
get one — harassed and often dogged to their injury. 

Under these conditions the four-year-old steer is worth about $25.00. 
With improved conditions the two-year-old brings more than $50.00. 
This is not theory, but as quoted in the foregoing, it has been done. 
It only requires enclosed and protected pastures, free from ticks, 
thoroughbred bulls at the head of the herd, improved winter pastures 
held in reserve to bridge over the short winter, and with cheap feed 
crops grown on the ranch to finish the beef, the world is our market. 

Today these lands and this business offer the most certain profits 
imaginable. The investment in this land alone is most alluring, 
but coupled with the beef business is doubly attractive. 

Page seventeen = 



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LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



iiiiiiiiLiiiiLiLiJiuiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiJjjjjiuiimjini 









Grade Shorthorn Cows on S. H. Gaitskill 's Farm at Mcintosh, Marion County 

Success Follows Proper Methods 
in Improving Breeds 

IN the following letter from S. H. Gaitskill, a successful raiser of 
beef cattle at Mcintosh, Florida, it is pointed out that the 
grade or thoroughbred beef bull cannot give as good service 
as might be otherwise expected if he is obliged to rustle his suste- 
nance on the range. Mr. Gaitskill has observed in his experience of 
several years that the sire of the herd should not only have good 
care but that breeding should be done systematically. Read what 
he says : 

Mcintosh, Florida, June 26th, 1914. 

Mr. J. E. Ingraham, Vice-President, 
Florida East Coast Railway Company, 
St. Augustine, Florida. 

Dear Sir: 

In response to your letter of June 24th, I will simply write you some- 
thing of my experience and my opinion as to the future of the cattle 
industry in Florida. Should you find anything that you can use, 
you can condense and cut out and use such parts of my letter as 
you may consider of value. 

Page eighteen 



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1U.UJJLL1 LUJJJ I LUJJ LO 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAT L WAY 
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Bermuda Grass at Melbourne, Brevard County 

I have now been breeding and fattening cattle in Florida for ten 
years. I started with the native cow and used Shorthorn bulls. 
Now I have cattle that would not disgrace the blue grass pastures 
of Kentucky. 

I have tried hard to get Florida cattlemen to use better beef blood 
in breeding, but it is up-hill work. Some have not been uniformly 
successful for two reasons : First, the beef bull is not as active as 
the Florida native, and when turned out on the range, the native 
bull sires the greatest percentage of the calves. The large beef bulls 
should never be put on the range with other bulls, if a reasonable 
crop of calves is expected that will show the blood of the beef bull. 

The second fault found with the better bred bulls when put on the 
range is that no thought is taken as to his size and the amount of 
feed that he must consume to maintain that size and make growth. 
A large bull on a sparse range will take a good part of his time to 
gather enough feed to maintain his size and produce growth, so he 
has no time to give attention to his "harem". The result, if he 
spends the greater part of his time with the cows, is that he does 
not get enough to eat and consequently he is condemned by the 
Florida cattleman. 

In time this will change as the demand for cattle increases, and with 
this increased demand for cattle will be a demand for better cattle, 
and better cattle can easily be supplied when pastures are fenced 
and the native bulls kept out. 

Page nineteen = 



EUIIIII IIIIIIIIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIIIIII IIITTTTTTTTT 



iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii mil iiimmiiiiiiir 



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LIVE 



STOCK 



FARMING 



I N 



FLORIDA 



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iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiini iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ij 




A Leon County Dairy Herd of Jerseys on the Robert Bradford Farm 

By taking some care of the bulls we can easily arrange for the calves 
to be dropped in December, January, February and March. That 
means that some time in August we can put our bulls in a pasture 
to themselves and keep them away from the cows until some time 
in March, and see that the bulls are kept in good, strong vigorous 
condition through the winter. 

If pasture gets short, give your cattle other feed. Every man that 
has a bunch of cows should have a dipping vat and a silo. Each 
is a money-maker. The vat will keep the ticks down. No man 
ever got a profit from feeding ticks and that is what he does when 
he allows his cows to become infested with the ticks, and heavy 
infestation of ticks on a calf in the spring will give him such a stunt 
as he will never outgrow and develop as he should. 

A dipping vat can be made for one hundred dollars or less and it 
will be worth several hundred dollars each year until the range is 
free of ticks. The silo will furnish feed at a time when feed is 
scarce. We have quite a number of crops that make good silage. 
Corn is the best. Japanese cane and sorghum are excellent, and 
there is no part of the state where cattle can be handled success- 
fully that will not grow heavy crops of sorghum and Japanese cane. 

The dipping vat is to stop the feeding of ticks and the silo to aid 
at times of short pasture will lessen the death toll of the herd won- 
derfully. It does not take much silage added to the feed they would 



= Page t w e n t 



Etm i' h i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniii iinniiiiiiiiiiiiiii imiiiiiiniiiiii iniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i ii iiiiittttt 



m i n i m mm i nni iii iiin i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiini mini iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiimi 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 
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Field of Pearl Millet near Fellsmere, St. L.ueie County 

otherwise get to bring the bulls out in the spring in strong, vigorous 
condition, and we should cut out the weak cows and calves and give 
them a little silage which will make a remarkable difference in their 
growth. 

I am sure that every hundred -ton silo will carry over a hundred 
head of cattle through the winter in fine shape and would be of great 
help to two hundred head. I am quite satisfied with a little extra 
attention given our cattle, real prosperity is dawning for the Florida 
cattleman who has a good range. 

I think the Kissimmee country, the Myaka River country and the 
Alachua lake country form the best range sections. The Kis- 
simmee valley has a fine cattle range, good in summer, and furnishes 
fair maintenance grazing through almost every winter. 

The question of good bulls is a serious one. My experience of 
bringing good bulls from the North makes me try very hard to get 
a supply that have been raised below the quarantine line. For 
breeding to native cows I would as soon have a high grade, if a good 
individual, as a pure-bred bull, but there are a great many men 
who mistake an inferior animal, if he is registered, when registra- 
tion is of no value if breeding to cows that cannot be registered. 

I have had numerous calls for bulls ready for service, but I make a 
practice of "steering" my calves every fall, no matter how good 
they are, as I get well paid for all of my steers as yearlings. Velvet 

Page twenty-one = 

rniiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiii iimmiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiii mum hi inn mini iiiiiiiiiiiiiiniii i i iiiiiiiin r. 



IIIIIIIU 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 IIIIIIIIIHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIllHlllllTTTrmilllllllllll lllllllllllllllll [Illllll Illllll mTTTTTT 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

gmiiiiiinimin iiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiimHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiirnTTTiTiTnTrnTnnTiniTTTTi 




Jersey Calves on Koht. Bradford Dairy Farm in I^eon County 

beans and a little silage make my calves prime baby beef about 
March, when they are from twelve to fourteen months old, and I 
find this more profitable than saving for bulls, and the sooner the 
cow man of Florida realizes that he must buy his bulls as calves, 
the sooner he will have some good bulls to put on his range. 

I castrate from ten to twenty-five calves every fall that would be 
of immeasurable value to the cattle interests of the state if they 
were kept as bulls and turned on the range. My calves are 7-8 to 
15-16 pure bred, with a few that are pure bred. I feel that I am 
safe in saying, and I form my opinion from my own experience, 
that there is no state in the Union that can produce beef cheaper 
than Florida; but I believe our greatest profit is to come from tak- 
ing better care of our calves, keeping them vigorous and growthy, 
and selling our yearlings to go to corn belt feed lots of the North. 
This can easily be accomplished by using better beef breeds, cutting 
the milk breeds, the Jerseys and Holsteins, entirely out of our 
beef cattle herds and taking a little better care of our stock. 

The native Florida cow is a better beef animal than any of the milk 
breeds if she is given enough feed to allow her to fully develop. By 
feed I do not mean feed that has been gathered for her — she will 
get a good maintenance ration if she is given good range. We have 
only to fence our ranges and not overstock them. There is no reason 
why we should not get as good or better prices for our cattle than 
Texas, as our freight rates to the corn belt feed lots should be less 

= Page twenty-two 



irmmimOTLttinmiiM^ innuimuuMuimi 



ii iiii iiiiini 



Tiiiiii i ii u i iin Hm i n iiiiiiii Hii ii im ii ii i i iiiiii ii iii ii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i iiiiiiii i iiiiii i i ni 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 
m i n i m il ium ii ii i iiiii i i i iiiii i iii iii i iii iii iiiiii ii iin ii niiiiiiiillllllllllllllli Humm in g 







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Oats at Vero, St. I^ucie County 

than from Texas, and I am sure we can grow the animal at as little 
cost as the Texan can. 

Now, Mr. Ingraham, I hardly think this is just what you want, hut 
you can use just such parts of it as will suit your purpose. I have 
some pictures of natives, some of Shorthorn grades and of a pure- 
bred Shorthorn bull and I will gladly let you have any of them you 
may want. We have no range country over this way like the Kis- 
simmee valley country, but should you have anyone who would like 
to see what has been accomplished, send him to me and I will 
show him what is possible in the cattle producing line. 

Very truly, 

S. H. Gaitskill. 

Greatest Success Results from 
Improved Breeding 

HON. C. A. Carson, of Kissimmee, one of the largest cattle 
owners in Florida, says that the cattle industry in this state 
is prospering. In his letter on the following pages Mr. Car- 
son also calls attention to sheep raising in Florida as an attractive 
and profitable business: 

Page twenty-thr 

nDi m. i [i iiiii i i i i ii iiiiii mi i iiiiiH i i i ii iL ii immi mnrnin i ii iiii in i mnTHTN m i n i 



TTTTTTTTIil 



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LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

TTTTTTTTTmTrnTrTTTTTTTTTTnTnTIIII I Illll Illlll Illlllllllllllllll IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMIIIIirrmTTq 




Part of Dairy Herd of Jerseys on Florida Vegetable Company's Dairy Farm near 
Hastings, St. Johns County 



Kissimmee, Florida, July 3rd, 1914. 
Mr. A. L. Hunt, 
Kenans ville, Fla. 

Dear Sir: 

Replying to your request for information about the cattle and 
sheep industry in Osceola county, in what is known as the Kis- 
simmee prairie country, beg to say that for a great many years this 
has been recognized as the best adapted for purposes of cattle and 
sheep raising of any part of Florida. 

During the period of twenty or twenty -five years ago such men as 
E. O. Morgan, William Alderman, William Shiver, Readding Parker, 
R. B. Savage, A. E. Godwin, Walker Bros , and others made much 
money raising native cattle on native grasses. At that time no 
attention whatever was paid to blooded cattle, and there were no 
pastures enclosed, as it was not necessary. The range was all open, 
free to be used by anyone who had a few cattle. Inasmuch as the 
climate was so equable and uniform the native grasses would sus- 
tain cattle splendidly throughout the year, winter as well as summer, 
therefore it was not necessary to ever buy a pound of feed for these 
cattle. The only expense was in rounding up, marking and brand- 
ing the calves in the spring, and shipping beef wherever it was 
wanted. 

z Page twenty -four 



nTTTTTII lTTTTTTIIIIIllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllHlllllllllllllllllllllllHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHnilllll mill Iinj 



| i urn iiiiiiiiiiiiiniii miiiiiiiiiiiimiii i iiiimiiiiii iiiii iii i n i i i iiii ii i i i i iii i iiiiiiiii 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

ei iiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiini iiiiiiiiinii i nun 



'lllllllllllllllll I f 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ITTT 




Cutting Corn for Silo on Hastings Cold Storage Company's Farm, St. Johns County 

Since that period some portions of the range have been bought by 
cattle owners and fenced for their own use. In nearly all these 
cases some attention is now being paid to the introduction of good 
blood. This feature of the business, however, is practically in its 
infancy, but wherever tried by the introduction of thoroughbred 
bulls the shipped cattle have been a decided success. The principal 
strains introduced are the Hereford and the Aberdeen Angus, or as 
familiarly called the Black Polled Angus. The latter seem to be the 
favorite by the majority of those who have tried them and watched 
the outcome of the experiments. The most noted example of the 
Black Polled Angus is the herd now owned by the Carson Cattle 
Company, of Camp Hammock, on Lake Kissimmee. They intro- 
duced a carload of this breed of bulls and heifers last fall. 

Probably twenty years ago large herds of cattle could be bought 
at $5.00 per head. Now the regular price, including cows, calves, 
two- and three-year-olds and yearlings, is $15.00 per head, with the 
result that cattle owners today are prospering very much more 
than they did some twenty years ago. 

During the past two years this part of the country, with Kissimmee 
as headquarters for shipping operations, has become noted for its 
large supply of cattle, with the result that during the last fifteen 
months there have been shipped from this point fully ten thousand 
head of cattle. Shipments have been made to Kansas, Oklahoma, 
Wyoming, Missouri, West Virginia, Mississippi, Ohio and Texas. 

Page twenty -five 

nillil iiiiiiiiiiHiiii iiiiinnmmmrrTTTTTrrmmriiiiiiriiriiiiiirriiirmimrmTTmiiiiii nun i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 



Illlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 



lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllHIIIITTTTTn 



E 



STOCK 



FARMING 



I N 



FLORIDA 



L I ^ 

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•4*difc-» : ■ - * 



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Jersey Calves at Florida Vegetable Company's Dairy Farm, near Hastings, 
St. Johns County 

Some of the principal owners of cattle now in this section are Lesley 
& Bass, Rull Bass, Henry T. Bass, John R. Bronson, Ed. Whaley, 
Carson Cattle Company, Geo. C. Bronson, A. S. Drawdy and Ordia 
Bass, of Kissimmee, Florida; A. F. Bass, of St. Cloud, Florida; W. R. 
Godwin, Whittier, Florida; A. E. Godwin, Rosalie, Florida; Robert 
Alderman, W. F. Walker, J. H. Walker, W. P. Underhill, W. E. 
Underhill, J. S. Underhill, and H. J. Moody, of Bassenger, Florida; 
Geo. W. Hopkins, of Melbourne, Florida. The above is a partial 
list of the owners of the larger herds; hundreds of smaller owners 
occupy the same territory. 



Sheep Raising 



My attention was first called to the profits to be had from raising 
sheep when my father-in-law, the late Hon. John M. Bryan, bought 
a very small flock of sheep a number of years ago, for which he paid 
$350.00. He owned these sheep for about twenty months, in the 
meantime selling enough wool and mutton to pay back the original 
cost; then he sold his stock for $1,200.00, thus making a clear profit 
of $1,200.00 on an investment of $350.00 in twenty months. Since 
that time I have observed the industry quite carefully, and beg to 
say that so far as I can get the information, sheep and cattle both 
are more free from disease in Florida than in almost any other state, 
with the exception of the tick, which is common to all the southern 
country . They requi re very little attention so far as di sease is concerned . 

= Page twenty-six 

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IIIIIIHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIH 



illinium in 



Hlllllllllllilllllllllllllllllllllllill limn iiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii 



FLORIDA EAST 

miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiini 



COAST 



RAILWAY 



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Japanese Cane at Fellsmere, St. Lucie County 

I have owned as many as eight thousand to ten thousand head of 
sheep at a time, and have never found it necessary to dip for scab 
or to treat for foot rot. 

The statement as to better breeds of cattle made above applies 
equally to better breeds of sheep. That is, but little attention has 
been paid to the breed until within the last two or three years. 
They are largely on the open range, but yield very much better 
results when cared for carefully as in the western states. 

The principal enemies of sheep on the range are dogs, hogs, buzzards, 
and wild cats. The injury from these enemies is possibly about 
in the order in which they are named, but it will be readily seen 
that an attendant could minimize the danger from any of them. 

The clip from sheep of the ordinary grade will average from two 
and one-half to three pounds per head, of a really good grade of 
wool. Better breeds would produce a heavier fleece, but I do not 
believe the fleece in Florida on any breed would be quite as heavy 
as it would be in a colder climate. The animal does not need as 
much protection. This is clearly shown on the coat of wild fur- 
bearing animals, such as the otter, the beaver, etc. 

The local markets in Florida easily consume all the mutton now 
available. There is always a ready sale for wool. As the ewes 
lamb in December and January, Florida is the finest place in the 
United States to furnish spring lamb for market. 

Page twenty-seven E 



miinnuuiiiiiiiini mm iiiuiiiiin iiniiiiin iimiiiiiiiii niiiiiinniniiiin iiiinimnimiiu mini 



iiiimiiiiiMiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiT 



IIIHIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTT 



llllllllllllllllll 



LIVE 



STOCK 



FARMING IN FLORIDA 

Ej . minimi muni iiiiniiiii i 111 iniiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i iiiiiiiiimiiiiiiini i 




A Good Yield of Crab Grass in St. Johns County 

Some of the principal owners of sheep in this section are Ordia Bass, 
Henry T. Bass, R. D. Waring, Ed. Whaley, J. O. Ward, and Carson 
Cattle Company. 

Notwithstanding that the raising of sheep is extremely profitable, 
the industry has not been as largely developed as it is capable of 
being, by a great deal. 

The number of sheep in the territory mentioned probably does 
exceed twenty thousand, while the cattle in the same territory will 
probably run from one hundred and fifty thousand to two hundred 
thousand. 

Possibilities 

There are so many feedstuffs adapted to cattle and sheep that can 
be easily and cheaply produced. It is easy to see that when better 
breeds of both cattle and sheep are introduced and more modern 
methods for caring for them are in operation, the profits to be de- 
rived will be increased many fold, and as I see it, the Kissimmee 
valley section of Florida will furnish beef for many thousands of 
people in this and adjoining states. So far as I know there is no 
section of this state that can equal this valley for stock raising 
purposes. 

Yours truly, 

C. A. Carson. 

= Page twenty-eight 

■ 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n i n 1 1 iiiiiiiiiimiiiiinnTTTT 



iimmiiiiiiiii iiiniiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiii iiimm iiiiiiiiiillliild 



iii M iiniiiii i iiii ii iiii illl li lil i mill l l lll ll lliiiiii i iii iii i ii i i i iii i ini i iiH n illin ium i iiiiiii i i i i ni i i i hiihih i h 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

■M l l l l l l lll llll llllll l llll lllll l l l l ll ll llll lllllllll Ill l lllll Illlllllllllllllll lll Il l l l II I l l ii i iii i iiii i ni i m 



Would Cross Herefords and 
Native Cattle 

MR. U. J. WHITE, of St. Augustine, an authority on live- 
stock raising, who is mentioned elsewhere in this booklet, 
believes that a cross between pure-bred Hereford cattle and 
native stock, to be followed by still more improvement in the breed, 
will result in the best beef cattle for Florida. In the case of hogs 
he favors beginning by crossing the native Florida hog with the 
Duroc-Jersey. He believes in breeding up to a high standard to 
realize the greatest profits. 

Mr. White says that rape is the great feed crop for hogs — he has 
seen Florida hogs well fattened for market with rape as the princi- 
pal feed and no grain used whatever. He considers that at the 
present time Florida offers an unusual opportunity to the livestock 
farmer by reason of the vast acreage of cut-over and turpentined 
lands which can be purchased for low prices and made to produce 
a great quantity and variety of forage crops and pasture grasses at 
a minimum expense. 

Slaughtering Plants Will Come 

IT is believed by many that the day is not far distant when some 
one or more of the big western packers will establish slaughter- 
ing plants in Florida. About a year ago what might be termed 
the first step in that direction was taken when stockyards were 
established in Jacksonville. It is certain that the big packers are 
paying close attention to Florida in the belief that it will become 
one of the greatest beef, pork and mutton producing states in the 
Union in the near future. Not long ago the writer was informed 
by a representative of one of the leading packers in the United 
States that his company as well as two or three others had live- 
stock buyers on duty in Florida. He said further: "Until there 
is an up-to-date slaughtering plant built in Jacksonville, the stock 
raisers of Florida will have to compete with the western markets 
and ship their stock. If Florida farmers should go into the stock 
raising business on a large scale they would have to compete with 
the other sections of the country in marketing their stock, but we 
see no reason why they could not do this successfully, as it is our 
opinion stock can be raised as cheaply in Florida as anywhere else 
in the country. Our livestock raisers are competing successfully on 
cattle, as is evidenced by western packers sending buyers here and 
buying and shipping, and we know of no reason why our livestock 
raisers could not raise more hogs and compete with the rest of the 
country." 

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Iii ii ii i i ii ii i i iiiii i i i iiii i iii i inii iiii i ii i iii iiiiiiiiii inn iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiTm 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

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A TKAINI.OAI) OF SOUTH FLORI 



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PENS OF NATIVE FLORIDA 

E Page thirty 

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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 



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.E FOB NORTHERN MARKETS 



Page thirty-one 



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FLORIDA 



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OCK FARMING IN 

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Dairy Plant of Florida Vegetable Company at Hastings, St. Johns County 

Dairying Profitable in Florida 

DURING the year from July 1st, 1911, to July 1st, 1912, 39,- 
621 milch cows in Florida produced 8,131,761 gallons of milk 
valued at $2,166,018.00. During the same period 1,133,887 
pounds of butter, valued at $351,964.00, was made in the state. This 
is in line with the showing made in the dairy business by almost 
all southern states and there is no reasonable excuse for the com- 
paratively small number of cows and the limited production of milk 
and butter as far as Florida is concerned when its wonderful feed 
crops and climatic resources are considered. 

Every year more than a million dollars is sent to other states to pay 
for needed dairy products when it is a matter of common knowledge 
among Florida dairymen that conditions are not only favorable to 
the production of all the milk and cream used in the state but that 
with proper effort Florida can produce immense quantities for ex- 
port. To bring about this desirable change Florida needs thou- 
sands of intelligent dairy farmers who will make the most of the un- 
paralleled advantages that the state has to offer them. 

In the first place, the protein feeds necessary to feed dairy stock can 
be grown in Florida in great profusion and in great variety. Cow- 
pea hay, analyzing sixteen per cent, protein, is equal pound for 
pound to the best bran. Velvet bean hay and beggarweed are also 
high in protein content. In carbohydrate feeds we have an abun- 

P a g e thirty-two 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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Interior Dairy Barn of Florida Vegetable Company near Hastings, St. Johns County 

dance in Japanese cane, sweet potatoes, cassava and others. There 
are any number of other feed crops and pasture grasses in addition 
to corn silage that can be produced in quantities in nearly all parts 
of the state. 

The extra twenty -five per cent, of feed during the winter months to 
keep up the natural heat of the animals is not needed in Florida. It 
is also a fact that dairy cattle are bothered comparatively little by 
flies in Florida for the reason that this pest, so common in the north, 
is extremely scarce here during the greater part of the year, and 
never anything like as bad as the writer has seen it in the famous 
corn belt of the United States. It is true Florida has the tick to 
deal with, but it is not difficult of control if cattle are well salted and 
well groomed as dairy stock should be. 

Of dairy cattle breeds for Florida the Jersey seems to be the most 
popular, though some Florida dairymen are getting excellent results 
from Holsteins. They are all agreed that high grade cows of either 
breed are by far the most profitable. Concerning breeds C. K. Mc- 
Quarrie, of the Florida State Experiment Station at Gainesville, 
Florida, says: 

"Every dairyman has his own favorite breed, but in Florida the 
Jersey seems to be the most popular. There are several reasons 
for this; but the principal one that concerns the man that makes 
butter is that the fat globules in the Jersey cow's milk are larger than 
in the milk of the other breeds. The butter made from the Jersey 

rage thirty-three = 

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iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ii ii inn i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i him iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHii iiiiiiiiiiiiiii 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

Ejiiniiiin minimi i in iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiini minim iiiiiiini iniiiiiiiiiini ii lj 



cow's milk stands up better in warm weather, and will not turn oily 
as soon as that from other breeds, while its texture is good all the 
way through. From personal experience I prefer a high-grade Jer- 
sey, about seven-eighths Jersey and one-eighth native. This grade of 
cow will give you a hardy animal that is a good forager when turned 
to pasture or on the range. Its milking capacity will, in most cases, 
equal that of the pure stock, and as a general rule it will produce 
milk at less cost than the pure Jersey. Such animals do not require 
the same care and pampering as the thoroughbred, and cold and wet 
spells of weather do not affect their milk production so much. Any- 
one wishing to get good results and build up a herd of good animals 
can easily do so by keeping a full blood Jersey bull, and so grading 
up his herd. This bull should be changed every four or five years 
to prevent in-breeding. Every dairyman should raise his own cows 
by selecting the best of his heifer calves. By doing this he can build 
up a herd of a certain type, and can select the best milkers as they 
develop their milking qualities, while those not coming up to the 
mark can be sold off." 

In a recent issue The Florida Farmer and Homeseeker says: 

"It is safe to say that no greater opportunity exists in Florida today 
than that which is open to the dairy farmer. The demand for dairy 
products in almost every section of the state far exceeds the supply 
during every month in the year and the result is good prices to the 
producer all the time. Prices vary according to the extent of the 
demand. During the summer good dairy butter is sometimes sold 
for as low as thirty-five cents per pound while the price runs to fifty 
cents and above during the winter season. Fresh milk brings from 
ten to twenty cents per quart; cream, thirty to forty cents per pint, 
and there is invariably a market for buttermilk at the soda fountains 
and in private families. 

"There is no lack of feed for the Florida dairy herd that can be pro- 
duced right on the farm. In many sections of the state corn has 
become one of the standard crops, while cowpeas and many other 
forage crops and grasses can be grown in quantities if the proper 
effort is put forth. 

"The fertility of the dairy farm can be maintained at a minimum 
expense because there is comparatively little taken from its soil that 
is not put back in the shape of manure. It is said that eleven hun- 
dred pounds of cow produces each day from forty to fifty pounds 
of fresh manure, and twenty to thirty-five pounds of urine. In one 
year this amounts to 15,300 to 18,200 pounds of fresh manure and 
7,000 to 12,000 pounds of urine. This is sufficient manure to dress 
an acre of potatoes to yield one hundred and seventy bushels. 

If a dairy is operated almost entirely for the cream it produces there 
is a quantity of skimmed milk available for feed that means a great 
deal to the farmer in the economical raising of hogs and poultry." 

= Page thirty -four 
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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 
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A Fair Sample of the Corn Florida Produces. Raised on the Farm of C. A. Dupont 
at Hastings, St. Johns County 

[Average length of ears, 9% inches; weight of three ears. 3% pounds] 



Page thirty -/ire - 



UNI Illl MIDI ITTITTTT1 Illllll.lllll 1111111111 1 1 llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllTTTTr3 



imiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiHiiniii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiini i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiiiiiun 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



MiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiiniHiiiiiiiriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiMiiiiinnMiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiim iiiiHiiiiiiiiiiirrnx: 




Bermuda Grass Lawn at T. A. Snyder's Home at Hobe Sound, Palm Beach County 

Florida Pasture Grasses 

By John M. Scott, Animal Industrialist, Florida Experiment Station, 
Gainesville, Florida 

THE title of this article would indicate that it is closely related to 
livestock. When we think of livestock we naturally think of 
pasture grasses. Without pasture there is little or no live- 
stock produced. I mean by this that to produce livestock on an 
economical basis it is of prime importance to have an abundance 
of nutritious pasture. 

We are often asked: "What is the best pasture grass?" Perhaps the 
man on a cow pony from the western range would answer "buffalo 
grass and grama grass," while the stockmen from the central states 
might say, "blue stem ;" and the colonel from Kentucky would say, 
"there is nothing better than blue grass." 

All, perhaps, have told the truth, and yet they do not agree as to 
which is the best pasture grass, for what may be the best grass in 
one part of the United States is sometimes worthless in other sec- 
tions. We have named four good pasture grasses, yet none of these 
can be recommended for Florida. What, then, are best grasses for 
Florida? 

The best grasses for Florida are Bermuda, Para, the various species 
of paspalum, and Guinea grass. Bermuda is a grass that has been 

= Page thirty-six 



Him 1 1 1 1 1 1 irrmr 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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abused in all manner of ways; had it not been such a good grass, it 
would have died long since of despair. Grasses that are easily 
eradicated are, as a rule, injured to a considerable extent by grazing. 
A grass that will stand continuous tramping and daily grazing must 
have good staying qualities or it will soon disappear. Bermuda 
grass has many qualities to recommend it. It is a very nutritious 
grass; it starts growth early in the spring and continues until late 
in the fall; it is not killed by cold here in Florida; its habit of growth 
is such that it soon makes a good sod, which is not easily injured 
by stock tramping over it. It has the staying qualities that few 
other grasses can boast of. It is propagated from stem and root 
cuttings and also from seed. Perhaps the most satisfactory way of 
planting Bermuda is to use the stems and roots; these should be 
cut up into small pieces and scattered broadcast over the ground to 
be planted. The land can then be plowed. There is perhaps only 
one main objection to Bermuda grass. On thin, sandy land, stock 
keep it grazed close to the ground, and thus the animals are likely 
to get a good deal of sand, and in time become sanded. However, 
like other crops, it makes a better growth, and therefore furnishes 
more pasturage, when planted on good soil. 

Para grass furnishes an abundance of good pasturage over a large 
portion of South Florida. It is a grass that is better adapted to 
the southern portion of the state than to the northern and western 
parts, because it is injured more or less by hard frosts. Para grass 
is of a much larger and ranker growth than Bermuda. It will grow 
in almost any class of soil. It flourishes and makes its best growth 
on wet, mucky land. However, it grows well and yields an abun- 
dance of good pasturage on almost any class of soil except real 
sandy, thirsty land, such as a "blackjack" ridge. Para grass is 
not only a good pasture grass, but it also makes good hay. It is 
propagated by planting. Like Bermuda grass, Para grass has a 
number of good qualities. However, it has one weak point, and 
that is it will be injured by hard frosts. In those sections of Florida 
where hard frosts are not likely to occur, Para grass will perhaps 
be as satisfactory a pasture grass as Bermuda. On good land it 
will grow to a height of five or six feet or more. When it makes 
such a big growth, the stems are, as a rule, hard and woody. In 
such cases Para grass is not of much value for pasture except when 
it is kept grazed close to the ground. 

Here in Florida we find a large number of species of paspalum. A 
number of these furnish excellent pasturage whenever a good sod 
can be established. They are propagated by sowing the seed. The 
best of these are worthy of a trial on every farm in the state. 

Guinea grass is another tall, rank growing grass that does well in 
the southern part of the state. Like Para grass, it is injured by 
hard frosts. When grown under congenial surroundings, Guinea 
grass produces a heavy growth of pasturage. 

Page thirty-seven E 
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mun i iii iii i i i i ii i i iiii iii i iiiiiii ni i iiii i i ini iii i i n i n iiiiiiiiiiiii i i i iiiiii i iiii iiii i iiii i i i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ii ii ii ii i iiDiiMiM mnnni 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

LJ ii m iiiii M ii i iiiiii Mim iiiii M i i i iiii i iii iiinii ii i i iii i i i i iil Illl l I II I I I II IHIII III III IIII Illll l liii i iii i i ii " ling 




Para Grass at Vero, St. I^uoie County 



Bermuda Grass 

CONCERNING this well known grass, which thrives in all parts 
of Florida, Bulletin No. 509 of the United States Department 
of Agriculture says: "Bermuda grass is the foundation of all 
of the best permanent pastures in the South, and in many localities 
is important for hay * * * This grass will seldom do much 
more than cover the ground the first season, but when a good sod is 
once formed it will last indefinitely. The yield of hay on rich lands 
may be as much as four tons per acre or more. * * * The feed- 
ing value of the hay is about equal to that of timothy. The plant- 
ing of this grass is objected to by some on account of the difficulty 
of eradicating it when the field is wanted for other uses. It is diffi- 
cult to kill it with the most persistent cultivation, but it is easily de- 
stroyed by any dense smothering crop, which keeps it heavily shaded. 
Mr. U. J. White, of St. Augustine, now retired, but formerly one of 
the leading farmers and livestock raisers in Florida, classes Bermuda 
grass with the famous Kentucky blue grass as pasture for cattle. 
Mr. White states that in all his experience raising beef cattle in 
Florida, he has never found anything to equal Bermuda grass from 
every standpoint. He points particularly to the fact that in ordi- 
nary seasons it furnishes good pasture throughout the entire year, 
it is not easily damaged by grazing and when once started it is per- 
manent. 

Page thirty-eight 

WTTn-mn-n mm i m ii i iii i i iii i i m in iii n iii i iii iii iii ii iiiiiiiniiiiii Tllllll l ll l l l lllll ii ii iii i ii i ii ii ii ii iiiiii i i ii iiiiii i u 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 
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Rhodes Grass Pasture at Fellsmere, St. I.ueie County 

Rhodes Grass 

ONE of the best all-purpose grasses for Florida livestock is 
Rhodes grass, or East Coast grass, as it was named by Mr. 
J. A. McGuire, of St. Augustine, who introduced it into 
Florida. Mr. McGuire first learned of this grass in 1910, and finally 
succeeded in procuring a small quantity of the seed direct from New 
South Wales, Australia, where it had been introduced through Cecil 
Rhodes from South Africa. 

Concerning this grass, Mr. McGuire makes the following statement: 
"On April 28, 1911, I sowed four pounds of East Coast or Rhodes 
grass seed on one-eighth of an acre of ground, using plenty of cow 
manure, and took therefrom five cuttings as follows: 

First cutting, June 6th, producing 280 pounds cured hay. 
Second cutting, June 29th, producing 960 pounds cured hay. 
Third cutting, September 2nd, producing 955 pounds cured hay. 
Fourth cutting, October 6th, producing 560 pounds cured hay. 
Fifth cutting, December 14th, producing 450 pounds cured hay. 

"The above five cuttings were taken within eight months after plant- 
ing, producing a total of 3,205 pounds of cured hay, which indicates 
that an acre of land cultivated in the same manner and planted in 
the same proportion will produce in the same time 25,760 pounds 
or about thirteen tons of cured hay. 

Page thirty- nine = 



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TTTTTIIIIIIIIIMI 1 Illllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll I IIHIIIIIIlllHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII hill 1 1 1 1 1 ITTTTTTTTTTT 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiHmiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiimii i; 




Rhodes Grass Hay near Vero, St. Lueie County 

"Of course this was a special test, the ground being well prepared 
with a liberal application of cow manure, but it is a good example 
of what this grass will do when forced and properly handled. Ordi- 
narily this grass will produce, according to soil and climate, from 
five to six tons of hay to the acre, the number of cuttings per annum 
depending on the condition of the soil. 

"My experiment with this grass has been very gratifying and I find 
that it will withstand a long spell of dry weather, as that summer 
here was an exceptionally dry one. It will also apparently survive 
and do well in the cold weather, such as we have in Florida, as the 
temperature here has been down to freezing point (32 degrees 
above zero), and it does not seem to affect it in the least. However, 
in Australia, where this grass is cultivated extensively, they claim 
that it is somewhat affected by the frost, but if not too severe, the 
grass will spring up again in warm weather. 

"In order to handle this seed properly and obtain good results, I 
would recommend planting it during the first of March, as this will 
give it a chance to be well established before cold weather arrives. 
Prepare the ground the same as you would for wheat, rye or any 
grass seed, using a first class grass fertilizer, say about two hundred 
pounds to the acre, or more if the soil is very poor. 

"The seed is light and fine and germinates readily with a small amount 
of moisture, from seven to eight pounds being sufficient to sow one 
acre of land. It grows to the height of three or four feet and sur- 



= Page forty 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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vives long periods of drought, yielding a most nutritious fodder 
which is relished with sorghum, and as our experiment demonstrates, 
excels timothy, clover and even alfalfa." 

Since Mr. McGuire introduced East Coast or Rhodes grass, the 
truth of his statements in the foregoing has been proven many 
times in various parts of Florida. Mr. McGuire states that he has 
found that it grows better in a soil with an abundance of lime in its 
makeup. This led him to have one of the fertilizer factories make 
up a special mixture for it, consisting of one- third lime and two- 
thirds grass fertilizer. 

Briefly, a field of Rhodes grass properly sown and cared for, fur- 
nishes the best of pasture or cured hay for horses and cattle. It 
compares very favorably in nutrition with timothy and alfalfa. 
Mr. McGuire is of the opinion that by far the best results are ob- 
tained from using imported seed instead of domestic. 

Other Grasses 

CRAB grass is of considerable importance as a volunteer hay 
crop especially on sandy soils. It makes its growth late in 
the season, on lands from which early crops, like melons or 
potatoes, have been taken, and makes a good growth in fields of 
cowpeas, where it adds largely to the yield of hay. It is said to be 
somewhat difficult to cure, but when properly handled makes a 
good quality of hay. It is always a volunteer crop and need never 
be sown. 

Natal grass, from South Africa, is much like crab grass in habit of 
growth, but where the soil is very sandy it makes a heavier yield of 
better hay. It has become thoroughly established in parts of 
Florida. It will not stand heavy frosts, but from Central Florida 
southward it becomes perennial and is used some for permanent 
meadows. Farther north it is an annual, making a volunteer growth 
in fields from which early crops have been gathered and often pro- 
ducing a heavy growth in corn fields after cultivation ceases. 

Para grass and Guinea grass, both common to part of Florida, are 
dwelt upon on another page in this booklet. 

Florida Forage Crops 

PERHAPS the best forage crops for Florida are Japanese cane, 
sorghum, corn, velvet beans, Chinese beans, Yokohama beans, 
cowpeas, and beggarweed. Japanese cane is propagated by 
cuttings. It can be planted any time from November to April. It 
requires about three thousand whole canes to plant an acre. Before 
planting, cut the canes into pieces about one and a half feet long. 
Plant in rows from six to eight feet apart, and drop the canes in 
a double line in the row. Cover the canes from three to four inches 
deep. Give good cultivation from early spring until midsummer. 

Page forty-one = 

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iiiiiiini mi miiiiiiiiiiiiiiii niiiiii iiiiiii i i n nun iiiiiiiimiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiii 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



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Velvet Beans near Vt. Pierce, St. I>ucie County 

Sorghum is a good forage crop, but will not produce as heavy a 
yield per acre as will Japanese cane. It may be planted any time 
from early in March until August first. The early planting will 
produce two crops during the year. When planted as late as July, 
only one crop can be grown. There are quite a number of varieties 
of sorghum, all of which do well here. The best yielders are Goose- 
neck, Sumac, and Orange. The Early Amber is good, but the only 
advantage it has over any of the other varieties is that it matures 
two or three weeks earlier. Plant in rows three and one-half or 
four feet apart. One bushel of seed will plant five or six acres. 

Corn can be planted any time from February to April 15. Plant 
in rows three and a half or four feet apart, and about two feet apart 
in the row. If it is to be used entirely as a forage crop, it should 
be much closer in the row. 

A good fertilizer formula for general forage crops would be about as 

follows : 

Ammonia 3 per cent 

Phosphoric acid 5 per cent 

Potash 4 per cent 

Apply at the rate of 300 to 600 pounds per acre. 

Velvet beans and Chinese velvet beans should be planted in rows 
six feet apart, with a row of corn or sorghum between each row of 
beans. Plant the beans any time from the last of February until 
May. One bushel of seed will plant from four to five acres. 

Page forty -two 

Mi fTTHTTTrmTTTnnrnmTnTmTrrn 



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lii iiiNiHMM iiiiiiiiii i minium iiiiiiniiiiiiiiii mini i iiiii i iii i ii ini ii ii iiiii i mm iiii i iin ii i rm 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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Yokohama beans mature in about one hundred and twenty days, 
and hence can be planted at almost any time from early spring un- 
til the last of June. They do not make as rank a growth as do the 
velvet and Chinese, and hence can be planted in rows about two 
and a half feet apart, and from eight to ten inches in the row. 

Cowpeas, if for hay, should not be planted until July. Planted at 
that time they will be ready to harvest after the fall rains. Plant 
in rows two and a half feet apart and three to six inches apart in 
the row. 

The beans and cowpeas mentioned above will not require fertilizing 
to produce a good crop. 

A favorite feed for cattle in many parts of Florida is German millet. 
It yields heavily and grows rapidly. Near Malabar, Florida, on the 
central East Coast, a field of German millet grew to a height of four 
feet six weeks after sowing. The crop was then cut and six weeks 
later another crop was ready to harvest. This was the experience 
of Mr. W. Huebner, of Malabar, and the millet was grown on sandy 
soil without the aid of fertilizer. 

Corn and Japanese cane take the first rank in Florida as ensilage 
crops. Every one knows the value of corn in this respect. Japanese 
cane makes good silage. It keeps well, is relished by cattle, and 
the yield that can be secured makes it one of the most economical 
crops that the Florida farmer can grow for silage. It is also a valu- 
able crop for dry winter forage. It is easy to cure and the loss in 
storage is small. In a recent test at the Florida Experiment Station 
at Gainesville, Japanese cane was used as roughage in feeding for 
beef production. In this test the following feeds, per 1,000 pounds 
live weight, were fed: corn 12.50; velvet beans in the pod, 18.75; 
sweet potatoes, 20.8; and Japanese cane, 12.50 pounds. During a 
period of sixty days the steers made a daily average gain per 1,000 
pounds live weight of 6.5 pounds, at a cost of four cents per pound 
of gain. Japanese cane is a crop suited to a variety of soils. Good 
hammock land will no doubt produce the heaviest yields. But 
even the high pine lands will give good results when properly ferti- 
lized. On swampy muck land Japanese cane will make a fairly 
good growth. On such land the growth will be greatly increased 
by an application of lime (ground limestone or burnt lime). 

The growing of a high grade of corn in Florida with substantial 
yields per acre, has long since ceased to be an experiment. Experts 
state that any soil which will produce a good crop of cotton will 
also produce good corn. At the present time excellent corn crops 
are produced in many counties in the northern half of Florida. 
The common practice in the famous Hastings Irish potato district 
of St. Johns county is to plant potatoes with commercial fertilizer 
in January. Early in the spring, corn follows the potatoes in the 
same fields and not a bit of additional fertilizer is used. Cowpeas 
are planted with the corn two or three months later, and if the corn 

Page forty -thret 

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iimiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimmiii iiiiniiiiiii iiih i i iiiiiinn iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirnT 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

pirn iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiMiniiiiiiiii nun iiiiniiiiiiiiiiii i ir g 




Peanuts With Corn Adjoining Near Hastings, St. Johns County 



and cowpeas are cut for silage in August there is ample time for 
some other crop on the same land ahead of the next January plant- 
ing of potatoes. At the present time, September, 1914, there are 
between four and five thousand acres of corn in the Hastings dis- 
trict alone that it is said will yield from forty to fifty bushels per 
acre — the second crop of the year and grown without fertilizer. 
The stand of this corn is fine. The ears are of good size and are 
well filled with large uniform kernels. What is being done in St. 
Johns county is duplicated in many other counties in the state, 
especially in the northren half. Putnam, Leon, Seminole, Alachua 
and Marion counties grow quantities of excellent corn as do also 
many other counties in Florida. 

Cowpeas, soy beans, beggarweed, rape, velvet beans, peanuts, kudzu, 
cassava, chuf as, and many kinds of vetch are all valuable Florida for- 
age crops and grow readily in almost all parts of the state. All kinds 
of sorghums, Kaffir corn and broom corn give a very satisfactory 
yield and furnish good forage for Florida livestock. 

The Florida beggarweed is a valuable forage plant that grows as a 
volunteer in old fields with a light, sandy soil. It makes its growth 
late in the season and sometimes reaches a height of from five to 
seven feet. It is used for hay, grazing and silage and if cut at the 
right time and properly cured it makes an excellent hay. Although 
not sufficiently bulky to use alone in filling a silo, a little of it mixed 
with other silage crops greatly adds to the value of the silage. It is 
said to be more fattening than alfalfa or cowpeas. 

Page forty -four 



mii mi illlilllliiil iiiiniiiiiiiiiiii nun iiiniiii minimi 11111= 



Illlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Illllllllllllllllllll Illllllllllllllllll Illll I II 1 1 1 1 H 111 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ITTTTTTTmTTT 



FLORIDA 

311 Illllllllllllllll Ill 



EAST 

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COAST RAILWAY 

Illllllllllllllll MM Illllllllllllllllll 




I>uroc-Jersey Sow and Pigs near Hastings, St. Johns County 

Money in Florida Hogs 

THERE is no doubt in the minds of those who are engaged in 
that pursuit but that there are excellent profits awaiting the 
Florida farmer who raises hogs for market. The local demand 
for fresh pork is strong at all times of the year and particularly dur- 
ing the fall, winter and spring, when it brings very attractive prices. 
The day of the "razor-back" in Florida is past. Florida's leading 
livestock men have adopted for their slogan "Improve the breeds," 
and with the many advantages that the state offers in the way of 
cheap feed crops, mild climate, good local markets, etc., it seems that 
the business of raising hogs in this state cannot result otherwise than 
profitably to those who engage in it. 

One of the best forage crops in Florida for hogs is Dwarf Essex Rape. 
It has an unusually high feeding value and is used to good advantage 
in fattening hogs for market. Some stockmen have had great suc- 
cess with rape alone in this respect, but experiments have shown 
that it gives best results when combined with grain. Another ex- 
cellent green feed for Florida hogs is cowpeas. This is perhaps 
Florida's leading legume and it is readily grown in all parts of the 
state. 

The greatest fattener for hogs that is grown in Florida is the pea- 
nut, which yields exceptionally well in grey sandy soils with an abun- 

P a g e f o r t y-fi v e § 



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HI Illllllllllllllll Illllllllllllllllll 1 1 Illllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll IIIIIIITTT 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

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Hampshirf Pigs at Vero, St. T^ui-ie County 

dance of lime. At the experiment stations in various parts of the 
country it has been shown that whenever the amount of peanuts 
in the rations for hogs was increased there has been a noticeable daily 
gain in the weight of the animals. To feed peanuts without the 
vines and roots is too expensive to be practicable, a common prac- 
tice being to turn the hogs into the peanut fields after harvesting 
and let them get whatever is left. It is not considered good prac- 
tice to limit feeding for market to peanuts alone, as animals so fed 
do not yield a desirable quality of meat or lard and it is therefore 
essential that some grain and other feeds should be included. 

It is hard to name definitely the best breed of hogs for Florida, though 
two well known breeds seem to be the most popular. They are the 
Duroc-Jersey and the Berkshire. Chester Whites, Hampshires, and 
Poland Chinas are in evidence here and there and seem to do well, 
but authorities seem to favor the Duroc-Jersey for the reason that 
it is exceedingly well adapted to the South. It is a more prolific 
breed than either the Berkshire or the Poland China. Duroc-Jersey 
sows are also better milkers and mothers than the Berkshires or 
Poland Chinas. The Duroc-Jersey is also one of the best grazers 
that we have; they are strong and active and can graze over large 
areas. The Berkshires are also admirably suited to Florida. They 
are good rustlers, fatten at almost any age, and cross well with the 
inf error hogs of the country. The quality of the meat is good also. 
While they are relatively strong in breeding qualities, still they are 

E Page forty-six 



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I II HI IIII IIrd 



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FLORIDA EAS 
li 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 n 



T CO 

in i i ii iiiiiiiiiiiHiiiiii ii i i i in ii i i i iiiii ir mTTTTT 



i i iii m iiiiii iii iii i i i i iiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiniiiii 

AST RAILWAY 

Millin g 




Chester White Hogs on A. Snellgrove's Farm near St. Augustine, St. Johns County 

not as good breeders as the Duroc- Jerseys. They are, however, 
more prolific than the Poland Chinas. 

The September number of the Florida Farmer and Homeseeker says : 

"Upon two or three occasions lately this magazine has been asked to 
name the best breed of hogs to raise in Florida. There has been 
considerable discussion of this question in the past, some favoring 
one breed and some another. Certain hog raisers claim that a 
cross between the Duroc-Jersey or the Berkshire and the native hog 
is the best under existing conditions. 

"It appears, however, to the breeder who gives the matter proper 
consideration, that a pure-bred hog of some one variety should excel 
in Florida as is the case in other states. In such great hog raising 
states as Iowa the Poland China is strong largely because that breed 
is well adapted to the climate, feed and other conditions. 

"So far as the writer has observed the Duroc-Jersey is the most 
profitable hog for the South and while there may be some advan- 
tage in crossing this breed with the native hog in sections where the 
animals must range over considerable territory for their feed because 
of lack of sufficient good forage grown for them, the pure-bred hog 
must eventually triumph. 

"That the Duroc-Jersey is a good hog is quite generally admitted 
and there is no question as to his being adapted to warm climates. 
Perhaps the following description of his good qualities by Geo. W. 

Page forty-seven 



i m i ni in ii i iiiiiiii ii ii i nn i Him iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i iiii ii iiiiiii i lll llll l l lllll l ii iii ii i ii i i i nn i nn 



LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

^iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiM 



Bolds, of Louisana, in Modern Farming, will serve to give our read- 
ers a clear idea of why many experienced breeders think he is the 
best hog for Florida : 

" 'I have tried the pure-bred hog business with the Berkshire, Poland 
Chinas, Yorkshires and Duroc-Jerseys, and had to admit from ex- 




Cowpea Hay in Leon County 

perience that the Duroc-Jersey was the hog for me to stay with at 
all times, as he is the hog for the poor man as well as the rich. He 
is the hog that will take the place of cane and cotton for the South; 
he is the hog you can keep any place with a 26-inch high fence; he 
is a hog that is very gentle and can be handled by children; he is 
the hog that will farrow and raise more good pigs than any other 
breed known; he is the hog that is considered the best rustler and 
stays in good condition on the smallest amount of feed ; he is the hog 
that can stand the heat of the Southern climate and not have a pool 
to swim in to survive; he is the handy hog that will stand more 
punishment than any other. You can fatten him at any age, and 
you can grow him in six to seven months, with your native grasses 
here, so he will command a frame to take on fat at the rate of two 
and one-half to three pounds per day, and at nine months old should 
weigh two hundred and seventy -five to three hundred pounds. He 
is the hog the butcher wants; the hog the packer wants; and the hog 
the farmer and feeder wants, as he will bring the quickest returns 
for the feed he consumes and the best profit. 

" 'If the Duroc-Jersey hog is not the most practical hog for all, the 
majority of the farmers in the United States are surely very igno- 
rant regarding the most profitable breed to raise, as statistics show 
us that oyer sixty per cent, of all hogs marketed in the United States, 
at our different markets, are either Duroc-Jersey or crossed such 
that the Duroc blood predominates. 

" 'You can get as fine and delicious cuts from a Duroc hog as you 
can any other, and besides that is not all, for the whole hog is of the 
very best as a pork proposition. You can get your bacon with your 
three streaks of lean and you can get your choice hams and shoulders, 
and after all this you will get more pounds of lard to the weight 
than any other hog known. He is not the hog of few good qualities 
— every inch of him can be worked to the best results.' " 

^ rage forty-eight 

■mmmiu iimm iiii i LLiJLJJLJjj_m.i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 m 1 1 n 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 n 1 1 iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i i ii iii ii i i i i ii m i i i iiii i i iii mm 



l liii'iiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiii nun iiiiiii iiiinii muni iiiiiiHiiii ii i i i i i i i i ii i ii iii i iiiiHiiim i i i 

FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

CliiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiii Hiii'i'i nun hiiiiiii "Hiiii miiiiiiiiiiiH inn minimi m i l l 



Wool and Mutton a Source of Profit 

IT is not necessary to look up statistics to be convinced of the 
fact that the consumption of mutton per capita, in the United 
States, is steadily increasing every year and it is also true that 
the demand for wool will increase more rapidly from year to year 
than it is produced. It follows, therefore, that the business of sheep 
raising under proper management should be profitable wherever it 
is adapted to climate and feed crops and is afforded an accessible 
market. Florida possesses these requirements. In fact, she has 
sufficient resources to produce hundreds of thousands of dollars' 
worth of mutton and wool profitably. This is the opinion of ex- 
perienced sheep raisers, who are meeting with good success in the 
business in this state at the present time, as well as some of the fore- 
most authorities on the subject outside of Florida. 




Flock of Sheep in Volusia County 

In countries where economy in farm management has been studied 
a long time, the sheep is considered necessary in utilizing vegeta- 
tion on such waste lands as are not wet or marshy. But the sheep 
can hold its place on high-priced land as a meat producer alone. 
First, the lambs mature very rapidly, being marketable at four 
months of age or later, according to breeding and feeding. This is 
an economy, because a larger proportion of the total feed goes into 
increase of weight than in slower growing animals. Second, sheep 
consume a greater variety of plants than do other animals. Many 
of such plants are detrimental to pastures and would otherwise re- 
quire hand labor to hold them in check. Third, grain waste in 
harvesting can be entirely recovered by sheep. These facts prompt 
some farmers to claim that the summer food of sheep costs nothing, 
because what they consume would otherwise bring no returns. 

Page forty- nine = 



ii iiiiimiiiiiiiiiiiii hi ii 



11 hiiii iiiiiii nun ii i 



I lll ll l ll I J ll ll llllllllllllllllllllllll Illlllll Illlllllllllllll l llllll l lllllllllllll l l ll llllll l llll l l l III1II-LLLLLU111 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

i I I in i i iiii i iii i iii i lllllll Illlllll iniilillllllllllllllll i irr 



Compared with hogs, the sheep has an advantage in the wider 
variety of materials it consumes. Being a ruminant it makes its 
gain with a minimum of grain and expensive concentrates. Cowpeas, 
rape, soy beans, vetches, and any number of pasture grasses that 
thrive in Florida furnish the best of feed for sheep. Not long ago 




Ewe and Lamb on Pine Land near Tallahassee, Leon County 

W. J. Clarke, editor of the Shepherd's Journal, of Chicago, spent 
some time in Florida investigating its possibilities as a sheep raising 
state. Among other things, Mr. Clarke says: 

"During my itinerary I traveled, possibly hundreds of miles, through 
lands in the vicinity of Tallahassee, and other cities, and have seen 
thousands of acres of land which I feel sure would make splendid 
sheep ranches. I know from observation that such crops as are con- 
ducive to the raising of high class sheep can be raised almost any- 
where on these lands * * * Were I to locate in Florida with 
the necessary capital and the desire to make from six to fifteen per 
cent, on my operations and fifty to one hundred in due course of 
time on my original investment by the sale of my land, my ambi- 
tion would be to secure a large tract of land with the ultimate view 
of its becoming a large, well-pastured sheep ranch, which I would 
use for that purpose until the land was badly wanted for pecan 
nuts or fruit growing, and too valuable for sheep raising, which I 
believe in a few years it would unquestionably be. From this 
large tract of land I would select a few hundred acres upon which 
I would establish an early lamb raising establishment. The first 
thing that I would do towards bringing my land into condition for 
my early lamb plant would be to sow the land intended for this 
purpose to mustard, as it takes but thirty-five days for this plant 
to mature and it makes good sheep feed or a good crop to plow 
under as a fertilizer. Mustard is used in this way in England. 

"I would raise humus supplying legumes, such as the velvet bean, 
cowpea and beggarweed. All make good sheep feed and are splen- 
did for plowing under. Rape, kale, cabbage, vetches, turnips and 
all such crops grow splendidly in the South and should give as good 
results as in the south and west of England because of the lack of 

= Page fifty 

nlll HII III M II I II IIIIII I IIIIIIIIIIIII I I I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Illlllllllllllllllllllllllll Ill IIIIII II I IIMI I l llDJJ 



illinium i illinium mi mini i n i ii i ii i i iii i ii i ii iin i i rmrTr nm 

F LORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

IIIIIIIHIH IIII HHI II IIIIIIII I I I IIIIIII Illlllllll Illlllllllllllllll I I Il l llllll ll lll l ll l ll M lllllll l l l l | mTTTTTTT 



snow. * * * After I had grown on my farm such forage crops 
as I know from practical experience to be valuable for sheep raising, 
especially early lamb raising, I would buy a few hundred head of 
the common "piney woods" ewes and cross them with rams of some 
of the improved mutton breeds. By way of establishing a flock of 
early lamb raisers I would take as many of these ewes as I could 
get and breed a large portion of them to a Dorset or Tunis ram 
with a view of establishing a flock of ewes that would inherit the 
early-lambing tendencies of these breeds. * * * For raising 
early lambs I do not see why any country in the world could sur- 
pass Florida, for as I have said before, it surely has a wonderful 
climate and the land seems to grow roots, cabbage, corn, cowpeas 
and such like crops just as easily as growing weeds. I have it upon 
good authority that oats, rape and peas make a wonderful growth 
when sown together. * * * There is no necessity of housing 
the ewes or the lambs, nor need of clover hay. The ewes would do 
well enough on the ordinary herbage of the country in the spring 
and summer months after the lambs are taken from them, and the 
roots and forage crops, etc., and the mild climate would surely pro- 
duce a lamb that should vie with that raised anywhere. There is 
a good home market for spring lamb in Tallahassee, and, of course, 
Jacksonville and other southern cities. Any surplus could be shipped 
to New York and other large cities. As the ewes lamb early and 
the lambs cannot fail to be fat and ripe with good milking mothers 
and plenty of succulent rations, a really first-class article could be 
furnished. * * * Mr. C. E. Bradley established a small flock of 
pure-bred Dorsets on his farm near Tallahassee and raised early 
lambs which he sold to his friends at twenty -five cents per pound, 
which, although not a big price for this toothsome article, shows 
what can be done in the neighborhood of Tallahassee and other 




Leon County Ewes and Lambs 

points in Florida in this business. One feature which appeals to me 
in the early lamb business in Florida is that the forage crops most 
suitable for early lamb raising are at their best in the fall and winter 
when the ewes and lambs need them most. After the lambs are taken 
from the ewes, the ewes could be turned loose on the range." 

P a g j fifty-one £ 
ft" 'im ii min i iiiilll lll lll lllllll llllli il n il hi in in m m ii ii i im 



MHNIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMIIIIMMIIIIMIIIIIIIIIIIHIIIIIIIHIIIIIII II NIMH Illlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 

-'i iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinii hi ii minimi ii i i Minimum iimim iniTTTTTTr g 



CRESCENT BEACH 
i pmHT RY FARM 




Owned by J. A. Jackson, at Crescent Beach, St. Johns County 

Conditions Favorable to Poultry 
Raising 

NO amount of investigation is necessary to ascertain this fact. 
People have their little flocks of chickens in their back yards 
in town and on their farms just as they do in the North but 
as is the case there, they are not plenty enough to fill the strong 
demand for good fresh eggs and broilers. 

There are many poultrymen in Florida who are making a success of 
the business on a large scale. They are finding advantages in 
Florida due to the climate that are not duplicated elsewhere. 

A notable success with a good sized poultry farm in Florida is evi- 
denced in the case of J. A. Jackson, of Crescent Beach, on Anastasia 
Island, about ten miles below St. Augustine. Mr. Jackson estab- 
lished his farm four years ago, beginning with twenty -one hens and 
five cockerels. He now has a flock of from three thousand to eight 
thousand, depending on the season of the year, of as fine White 
Leghorns, Rhode Island Reds and White Orpingtons as are to be 
seen anywhere in the United States. Mr. Jackson has raised almost 
all of his own stock, having purchased but sixty breeding hens and 
one hundred baby chicks during the four years. Twenty-one of 
his hens have laid 1,495 eggs in 121 days, from which he incubated 
1,196 chickens and raised 1,034 to maturity. From the standpoint 

Page fifty-two 

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lllllllllllllllllllllllll ll lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllimTTTTTTffl 




One Thousand White Leghorn Pullets at Crescent Beach Poultry Farm near 
St. Augustine, St. Johns County 

of profit Mr. Jackson believes the White Leghorn to be the best 
breed for Florida. He states that he finds a ready market at a 
good price all the year round for all the eggs he can produce and 
that this production runs in the neighborhood of one thousand per 
day during the best laying season of the year. Mr. Jackson de- 
votes considerable attention to the production of fancy breeding 
stock for which he finds a ready market at good prices. 

In a recent issue, The Everglades Magazine, published at Miami, 
prints the following letter from Mrs. Theo. Ivens that shows what 
a small flock can do : 

"We came to Florida in September, 1910. In October we got eight 
hens and a cock— all of the Barred Plymouth Rock variety. I 
had never raised any chickens, as we had always lived in town. 
The first year I raised one hundred and seventy chickens from those 
Did not lose any from disease, but a few died from accidents. 



nine. 



"For three years I kept an account of chickens and eggs sold and 
amount of feed bought. At the end of that time we had a balance 
of $268.20 in our favor. We had what chickens and eggs we wanted to 
use and had one hundred and ninety chickens to begin our fourth year. 
"Since then we have not kept an account. At present we have one 
hundred and thirty hens and ninety-five little chickens. We are 
getting from seventy-five to ninety-five eggs each day. 

; Page fifty -threes 

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LIVE 



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L O R I D 

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Mrs. Theo. Ivens' Chickens at Miami, Dade County 

"We get an average of forty cents per dozen for eggs." 

J. H. Wendler, of Lakeland, Florida, secretary and manager of the 
Florida Poultry men's Association and an authority on raising 
poultry in this state, says : 

"That we can raise chickens in Florida is evidenced by the fact that 
a certain breeder of this state has exhibited his fowls all over the 
Southeast and central states and has never failed to take off the 
majority of the blue ribbons at each and every show and at some 
has been 'hog' enough to take all the blues in all the varieties that 
he breeds, and at one show won sweepstake cockerel with a bird 
about five months old. 

"All this is not said for the benefit of that breeder but simply to 
show that we can raise chickens in Florida, and that a five months' 
old bird is sufficiently developed to win over older birds raised in 
other states that should have been more mature for their age. 
"Now let us see why we can raise chickens here that are mature at 
an early age. Primarily one of the first essentials to chicken rais- 
ing is good range and fresh air, for fowls that are raised in closed 
doors with poor ventilation are always delicate and weak, whereas 
chicks raised in the open are just the contrary. But the North- 
ern breeder cannot raise his chicks out of doors, at least, not the 
early hatched, for the severity of the Northern winters and early 
springs will not permit of this. 

"Our ability to raise green feed twelve months in the year is another 
important factor in chick development, for nothing beats greens for 
both mature and young chicks. 

"Now let us consider the cost of chick production and see if this is 
not verily 'a poultry men's paradise.' 

"To start with, let us take the breeding stock. Fed on plenty of 
good green food they produce good eggs and plenty of them with 

E Page fifty -four 



iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii minimi i imiimiiii mm 



IIHIMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMI 



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FLORIDA E 

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AST 

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Breeding Pens at Crescent Beach Poultry Farm, St. Johns County 

the strongest vitality possible in the germ, which in turn produces 
strong, healthy chicks that grow off into fine robust specimens; 
thus insuring the health of the breeders. This green food should 
be one-half of a chick's diet and can be supplied in the form of col- 
lards, cabbage, lettuce, celery tops, rape, rutabaga, etc., and can be 
grown at a very minimum of expense. Green food not only fur- 
nishes nourishment but bulk also, which is essential to a chick and 
helps to keep down the grain bill; hence the cost of production in 
the feeding end of the game is no more, or even less than the cost 
of feeding chicks where the grain grows. 

"The next item of expense to consider is the incubation and brood- 
ing. 

"If this is done by artificial means then one can readily understand 
why in this climate, where we seldom have any cold weather, the 
cost of operating an incubator is very little, for the flame need not 
be turned up very high as there is no outside temperature to com- 
bat. 

"The same condition holds good in operating the brooders, for we 
need only a small flame in the lamp and that only for a few days or 
a week at the most, then the chicks can take care of themselves; 
and in the spring of the year a tireless brooder will answer the pur- 
pose to a nicety. 

"We have now cut down the feed bill and the cost of incubation 
and brooding and should be on our way to have a nice flock coming 

Page fifty-five 



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LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLO R IDA 

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White Leghorns at Fellsmere, St. Lucie County 

along, in all of which we have the advantage of our Northern breth- 
ren. But we still have another advantage and that is the ability 
to raise chicks at a time when all the rest of the world sleeps, so to 
speak. 

"Most of the hatching in Florida is done in the winter and early 
spring months and we are ready to supply broilers and fryers before 
the other fellow commences to hatch, hence we get a better price 
for them and there are times in the year when one can go down 
Franklin street in Tampa with a load of broilers and get his own 
price for them, but they always command a market at seventy-five 
cents to ninety cents each, while eggs will average the year around 
thirty-five cents a dozen." 



Turkeys 



THE business of raising turkeys for market has not been gone 
into extensively in Florida. Indeed, the entire country has not 
overdone the business of turkey raising as the census of 1900 
shows that on five million farms in the United States a little 
over six and a half million turkeys were produced. The fact that 
a southern state, Texas, produced the greatest number of these birds, 
makes it appear that they are adapted to a warm climate, and 
that may be one reason why the limited experiments that have been 
conducted in Florida have proven successful. The turkey in Florida 
requires a good range, plenty of grit and a reasonable proportion of 

Page fifty-six 



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FLORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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Flock of Turkeys near Indian River City, Brevard County 

wheat and scratch-corn. Regardless of the fact that Christmas and 
Thanksgiving in Florida are snowless, the turkey is the main feature 
of the dinner menu, and it never fails to command a fancy price. In- 
asmuch as young turkeys particularly are delicate, Florida's mild 
winters minimize the risk in raising them to a great extent. 

In the central and southern portions of the state birds need only to 
be protected from rain and cold winds. It is, however, considered 
advisable to provide sufficient shelter to meet any emergency. 



Ducks and Geese 



MOST varieties of ducks and geese do exceptionally well in 
Florida. The wild species of both varieties of these water 
fowl winter in the state by the millions, especially is this true 
in the case of ducks. Of the tame ducks, the Indian Runner breed 
seems to be the best for all purposes. W. S. Maxwell, of Melbourne, 
Florida, states that he experimented to quite an extent with Indian 
Runner ducks with very gratifying success. He states that his ducks 
were easy to keep in good laying condition and that they were excel- 
lent layers. Many Florida people have small flocks of Indian Run- 
ners from which they readily secure a very satisfactory yield in eggs. 
They are excellent for the table and for this purpose always sell 
at a good price. The demand for dressed birds is always good 
during the winter season. 

Page fifty-seven 

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H" 1 1 " i ii i iii illlllllllllllin mini m i nim 1 1 1 1 1 1 f TTTTTTTTTTn n 



LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



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Spring Lake in Chuluota Showing Lake Katherine Beyond, Also Resident Agent's 
Bungalow, Florida East Coast Railway Station and New Hotel 

Your Opportunity at Chuluota 

NO greater opportunity exists in Florida for diversified farming 
than on the Chuluota section of Seminole county. The varieties 
of soils in this section are admirably suited to growing the 
finest citrus fruits, vegetables and field crops, and there is a large 
area of fine grazing land for livestock raising; lakes supply fresh water. 

From the standpoint of beauty and development possibilities the 
townsite of Chuluota is hardly equalled anywhere in Florida. It 
embraces about 640 acres of rolling high pine lands and contains 
several beautiful lakes either wholly within or adjoining its borders. 
Chuluota is located on the Okeechobee division of the Florida East 
Coast Railway and has daily train service (except Sunday) each way, 
connecting with the main line at Titusville. The Chuluota Com- 
pany, owner of the townsite and the ten thousand acres of farming 
and fruit lands surrounding the same, has laid out and hardsurfaced 
a number of streets in the town, including beautiful drives around 
and on the borders of the lakes. Besides Resident Agent Chas. D. 
Brumley's bungalow, the company has just completed a fine modern 
brick hotel with a large number of guest rooms. The new railroad 
station with a telegraph office is open, and the new general store is 
now serving the wants of the surrounding population of Chuluota. 
In the vicinity of Chuluota there is a postofiice and another general 
store, many farm homes and bearing orange and grapefruit groves. 

T a g e fifty-eight 

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T i i ii ii ll llM lll l lHI II I I ll l l l ll llllll l l I l lllll l ll I mini i i i i i i i i iiii iini i tmimtt m i iiiiin rTTTTT 

F LORIDA EAST COAST RAILWAY 

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A Hardsurfac.ed Road Leading- Into Chuluota. Railroad 
Agent's Cottage at the Right 

Further information may be obtained from Mr. J. E. Ingraham, 
President of the Chuluota Company, and Vice-President of the 
Florida East Coast Railway Co., St. Augustine, Florida; W. E. 
Reese, 243 Fifth Avenue, New York; Louis Larson, 109 W. Adams 
Street, Chicago, 111., or Charles D. Brumley, resident agent of the 
Chuluota Company, Chuluota, Florida. 

Kenansville 

VALUABLE farming and fruit lands surround this new town on 
the newly constructed Okeechobee division of the Florida East 
Coast Railway. Kenansville is located in the east central part 
of Osceola county adjacent to the famous Kissimmee valley cattle 
range. The land about Kenansville is divided into five and ten-acre 
tracts and is being sold readily by the Okeechobee company at very 
reasonable prices; the location is decidedly healthy and the lands are 
highly productive. The place is ideal for livestock farming. The 
Florida East Coast Railway has a new station at Kenansville and 
serves the town with daily train service (except Sunday) each way. 
Full information concerning prices, terms, etc., can be had by address- 
ing J. E. Ingraham, President and General Manager of the Okeecho- 
bee Company, at St. Augustine, Florida; A. L. Hunt, resident sales 
agent, Kenansville, Florida; Louis Larson, Northwestern Agent, 109 
W. Adams Street, Chicago 111., or W. E. Reese, 243 Fifth Avenue, 
New York. 

Page fifty-nine = 



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iiiiiiiiiiiiiii Minim i iiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin ii minimi in r iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnm 

LIVE STOCK FARMING IN FLORIDA 



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Prairie Land in the Neighborhood of Okeechobee 

Okeechobee, a Place With a Future 

OKEECHOBEE has been designated as the town home of the 
suburban farmer, ranchman or planter. The Okeechobee dis- 
trict is bound to be a big crop country for the livestock farmer, 
the truck farmer or the fruit grower. The great Lake Okeechobee 
region contains millions of acres of the richest land in the country 
that will be producing enormous yields of fruit, vegetables and 
livestock within a few years. The new Okeechobee division of the 
Florida East Coast Railway, from the main line at Titusville, taps 
this vast country making a large section close to Okeechobee avail- 
able for settlement. The town is located directly at the head of Lake 
Okeechobee, the second largest lake in the United States, thirty miles 
wide and forty miles long. Canals large enough for good-sized steam- 
boats connect the lake with both the east and west coasts of the state. 
The Okeechobee Company, owner of the townsite and a large area of 
farm lands adjacent thereto, is now offering town lots and farms in 
sizes to suit the purchaser at wonderfully low prices, when the 
opportunity for profit is considered that is bound to follow the natural 
development of the country. Full information concerning prices, 
terms, etc., can be had by addressing J. E. Ingraham, President and 
General Manager of the Okeechobee Company, at St. Augustine, 
Florida; W. L. Bragg, resident sales agent, Okeechobee, Florida; 
Louis Larson, Northwestern Agent, 109 W. Adams Street, Chicago, 
111., or W. E. Reese, 243 Fifth Avenue, New York. 

Page sixty 



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